If you do not know, a few weeks ago I was asked to replace an injured member of the Fort Gordon Army Ten Miler running team. The Army Ten Miler is a 10 mile foot race that is held in Washington, DC every year in October and teams from around the nation, both military and civilian, compete in the event. I was a little bit uncertain about running a 10 mile foot race, only because I do not enjoy running for fun, but decided it would be a superb, and free, travel opportunity for at least one weekend this fall.
The team made the nine hour drive north on Friday so that we could rest and loosen up all day on Saturday and be primed for the race which was to be held on Sunday morning. Unfortunately I did not rest very much on Saturday, but stayed on my feet trouncing around DC until 2230. I did not intend to stay out that late, but I fell victim to infrequent public transportation that occurs after 2100. The only reason that I arrived back at my hotel at 2230 was that I called a cab to rescue me from a lifeless Pentagon City bus station after a stagnant hour.
To me, the conditions for race day were perfect, both the weather and the scenery were lovely. Others may disagree that it was too hot and too humid. I ran the 10 mile course in 1:00:15 to place 98th out of 17,641 entrants. Everything about the race went exactly the way I wanted it to go. I ran the first two miles at an easy pace and then picked things up for the subsequent eight miles. I really could not have asked for a better performance.
Unfortunately, immediately following the race, the team piled back into the van for the nine hour return drive south. We were supposed to stay at the hotel until Monday, but the team ran out of funding and packed it up early. Walking was difficult after that van ride.
Welcome to the off season!
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